


Lie Back and Think of England

by sgt_fuckybarnes



Category: Captain America (Movies), Captain America - All Media Types
Genre: Awesome Peggy Carter, F/M, Gay Bucky Barnes, Jewish Bucky Barnes, M/M, Oblivious Steve Rogers, Peggy centric, Peggy knows everything, Pining Bucky Barnes, Pining Peggy Carter, Unrequited Stucky
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-28
Updated: 2016-06-28
Packaged: 2018-07-18 20:00:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,349
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7328494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sgt_fuckybarnes/pseuds/sgt_fuckybarnes
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sleeping with Steve was a matter of dire importance. This was Steve. Sweet, virginal Steve who had done absolutely everything in his power to let Peggy know that she was not obligated to do anything with him. Which, while incredibly sweet of him was also incredibly tiring. The boy simply could not wrap his head around the fact that Peggy wanted him. Her sweet words and sweet kisses and rough words and rough kisses could not rouse him from his staunch, gentlemanly stance on the matter. Frankly, it was getting exhausting.<br/>Fortunately, Peggy had one last resource in her bag of tricks. Her absolute last option. Consulting a man who acted like he despised her about ways to sleep with his best friend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lie Back and Think of England

**Author's Note:**

> Wow this is...sadder than my usual stuff. Have some Steggy fluff with Stucky angst! Kudos/Reviews/Comments are always welcome!

Peggy Carter knew her way around a man. She was no fool, and despite what she may have convinced her family she was no virgin either. But this was different. This was a matter of dire importance. This was _Steve._ Sweet, virginal Steve who had done absolutely everything in his power to let her know that she was not _obligated_ to do anything with him. Which, while incredibly sweet of him was also incredibly tiring. The boy simply could not wrap his head around the fact that Peggy wanted him. Her sweet words and sweet kisses and rough words and rough kisses could not rouse him from his staunch, gentlemanly stance on the matter. Frankly, it was getting exhausting.

Fortunately, Peggy had one last resource in her bag of tricks. Her absolute last option. Consulting a man who acted like he despised her about ways to sleep with his best friend. God, give her a Nazi army anyway. At least they had the decency to try and kill her directly. Whereas Barnes- Barnes glared when he thought she wasn’t looking, his fists clenched a bit too tight on a glass of whisky left a bit too untouched. He hated her subtly, but aggressively. In a way only a man could ever.

She knew where he’d be. Barnes may be a bit of a clot but he was still a man, still a soldier. He had his own private sanctuary, just like everyone. He snuck out every day, every moment he could to a patch of dark woods behind the camp. Briefly, she thought if Barnes overreacted, no one would hear her scream in here. She dismissed the thought as foolish. Barnes was a soldier, not a murderer.

He was in a tree. It seemed like he spent most of his time in trees, more than even a sniper should.

“James.” Peggy greeted. Not warmly, but not unkindly either. He jolted, nearly falling from his perch.

“Peggy? What are you.... why are you here?” he asked, quickly recovering his wits. Peggy studied her nails, reluctant to admit her problem out in the open. Not that she was shy. Peggy was of the opinion that more women should talk of sex out in the open, with the same boldness a man might. But this was _James Barnes._ James Barnes who was lewd and angry and sad and broken in ways Peggy would be the first to admit she didn’t understand. Maybe he could convince Steve we has still the happy go lucky dock boy of their childhood, but Peggy saw the truth. He had been falling apart at the seams since his capture. And Steve- Steve had been a sensitive subject for the man. Particularly, it seemed, when it was Peggy talking about Steve.

“I have a bit of a problem. A…Steve problem, you might say.” She admitted.

Barnes stared down at her from his tree for a moment, like a particularly judgmental bird of prey, before he leaped down and landed on the ground with a heavy thud.

“What kind of Steve problem? What’s the punk done this time?” he asked, leaning against the thick trunk of his tree.

“He’s being a gentleman. Which is…fine. But he’s taking things so slowly. If he doesn’t stick it in me soon I might have a heart attack.” She said primly. Barnes barked out a laugh.

“Holy shit…you want me to make him fuck you?”

“Well, not _make_ him, not exactly. Do you think he even wants to?” she asked him. Barnes smirked, but it was edged with something bitter that she couldn’t quite pin down.

“Believe me, Peg. He wants you bad. Won’t shut up about you. ‘Oh, Peggy’s hair smells like flowers and gunpowder’ and ‘Oh, Peggy’s tits feel like pillows stuffed with angel feathers’ and ‘Bucky, Bucky come look at this drawing I did of Peggy!’ over and over.” He said, rolling his eyes. Peggy did find the decency to blush.

“That’s one question answered. How do I get him to act on his desires?”

“You’re that eager for a taste of super soldier cock, Carter? I didn’t peg you the type…” he mocked, a smug little sneer twisting his features.

“Are you going to help or are you going to stand there and mock me until I take it upon myself to shoot you?” she demanded. Bucky hesitated, but only for a moment.

“I’m not helping for you.” He said finally. “I’m doing this for Steve.”

“Of course.” Peggy agreed

“And I don’t wanna deal with the lovey-dovey aftermath, okay?”

“Naturally not.” She agreed, a tiny smirk playing on her bright red lips.

“And if he knocks you up, you name the little urchin after me.” Barnes added. Peggy laughed, startled. “If he knocks me up, you hold me steady while I maneuver the coat hanger.” She shot back. She’d finally managed to shock Bucky. His eyes widened.

“Kus Emek.” He murmured.

“Has Steve ever had sex before?” Peggy asked, changing the topic before she gave poor Barnes an aneurism. Bucky shook his head. “Nah. He made it to second base with Eleanor from across the street, an’ I’m almost positive the little fuck made out with my sister, but he never got further.”

Peggy nodded. “I suppose I’ll have to be his first, then.” She said firmly

“Suppose you’ll have to be.” He said. “What’ll you do if he’s bad?” he asked curiously.

“Well…I’m not going to suffer through something I don’t enjoy. Constructive criticism, perhaps?” she replied. Barnes gave her a dirty look.

“You’re not gonna ‘suffer through something you don’t enjoy’?” he mocked. “Not even to make him happy?”

“He’s a grown man, I’m sure Steve can handle being told that his cock isn’t god’s gift to women everywhere, unlike _some_ men.” She snapped. It wasn’t meant to be a specific insult towards Barnes, but he took it that way.

“The only reason I’m doing this is to make him happy!” he snapped back. He looked at Peggy like she’d punched his grandmother in the nose, with all the venom and hatred of an enemy spy. “If you’re not gonna make him happy, then why am I bothering? Why do I even put up with you, Carter?”

“I’m a human being too, James Buchanan Barnes! Just because we didn’t grow up together doesn’t mean I don’t deserve the same level of respect as your precious Steve. I’m a human being. And I love him, I do, but I’m going to do what’s best for me.”

“No, you’re gonna do your patriotic duty. What is it they say?” he asked. “Oh, yeah. ‘Lie back and think of England’.” He quoted, in an oddly accurate English accent. Peggy saw red. She lashed out, punching Barnes in the jaw. He didn’t bother to try and doge the blow, he leaned into it. His jaw left a distinct bruise on her knuckles, but her Grandmother’s ring had left a bloody cut on his jaw, so she counted that as a win.

“What the hell was that for?” Barnes protested, cradling his jaw.

“Just because I’m lacking a cock doesn’t mean I don’t deserve basic respect.” She said venomously. Barnes swallowed thickly.

“It hasn’t got anything to do with your junk, Peggy.” He insisted.

“Then what is it about?” she asked. Her voice was softer, now, as she’d calmed down significantly. Barnes was a boy. A scared boy, afraid of losing his only friend. She didn’t hate him, she pitied him.

“I…I don’t know.” He admitted. “I’m not sure what’s worse for me to picture. You and Steve pining for each other forever and never getting around to doing the deed, or…or doing it and it being _amazing_ and you falling in love and rolling around in the sheets for the rest of this fucking war or…. or…you not _liking_ it, and breaking his stupid naïve little heart and me having to pick up the pieces.”

“Do you not like the idea of me and Steve having a relationship?” she asked bluntly. No point in beating around the bush, she supposed. Barnes’s answer didn’t matter to her. She loved Steve, and Steve loved her.

“I just…. I just think that you’re taking what you have for granted.’ He muttered.

“Taking him for granted? I’ve gone to so much trouble for him. I risk my life for him over and over and I constantly make sacrifices in my career to aid him and be with him. I’ve found ways for him to take me on _dates_ while there’s a bloody war on! He means more to me than you will ever know. I asked a man who hates me for no good reason for tips on how to seduce him! That is how bloody desperate this has made me. He’s made me… You won’t ever understand how much I love him.”

“I understand more than you think, Carter. Believe me.” He said, his tone tinged with bitter despair. Now, Peggy Carter was not a stupid woman. She was not ignorant of what some men did together in the dark.

“Oh.” She said, softly. It became clear to her then that James Barnes was not stupid either. Although outwardly crude, he must have been quite clever to disguise it this whole time. If not for this, Peggy suspected she’d never have become aware of his condition. “Is…is it men? Or is it just him?” she asked, her voice barely above a whisper. She had no right to ask, no claim on this deeply personal information. James Barnes shrugged. “Does it matter? I’m sick either way.”

“You’re not ill, James you’re just…different.” Peggy insisted. Barnes scoffed, bitterly kicking at a rock on the ground.

“Why are you trying to comfort me? I was a complete dick to you. And I’m probably still gonna be a complete dick to you in the future. I’m not a nice person, Carter. I don’t _like_ you.”

“You may not be a nice person, but you’re a good person. And more than that, you’re a _person._ You deserve to be treated with respect. I may not be your friend, but I’m not going to mock you. Not for this.”

“Well, you’d be kind of a hypocrite, wouldn’t you?” he replied drily. Peggy almost smiled.

“Does he know?”

“No, he doesn’t. And he never will.” Bucky said.

“You never know, James. Perhaps after the war…”

“There _is_ no after the war, Peggy. Not for me. Steve, he’ll go on to be a big time hero. You two will get married. Have a couple ‘a blue eyed dark haired kids.” He rambled.

“You don’t plan on surviving this war.” Peggy said quietly. Her voice didn’t betray any particular emotion, but her eyes were sharp and almost warning.

“Something wrong with that? Lots of guys won’t survive this war. It’s not a big deal.”

“Men like you are being murdered in concentration camps all over Europe and you want to throw your life away over a man?” Peggy demanded.

“Men like me? You mean queers or Jews?”

“Either way, I’m not letting you do It. “ she insisted

“Don’t tell me you’ve grown fond of me, Carter?”

“Of course not. But your death would upset Steve. I don’t want to put him out of the mood, remember?”

To Peggy’s absolute shock, James laughed. “Right. Wouldn’t wanna put a damper on his sex life.” He replied, rolling his eyes.

“If you’ll recall, we don’t have a sex life. That’s why I’m here in the first place.”

“…He likes your thigh holster. Give him a peek next time you’re fighting together, he’ll cream his pants.” Bucky replied, his voice dull and emotionless. Peggy arched a perfectly plucked eyebrow. “Duly noted.” She said happily. “Thank you for the advice, James. And…erm… for the record, your secret will be safe with me.” She added

“Even if you told, no one would believe you.” Barnes pointed out. “I cover my tracks.”

He was right. Even if Peggy wanted to betray him, no one in their right mind would believe that carefree, promiscuous, doll-dizzy James Barnes was a queer.

Peggy turned to leave, only getting a few paces away before she paused and turned back around. “Oh, and James?” she asked.

Bucky looked back up at her. “Yeah?”

“Consider this conversation…a truce. Alright?” she said. Bucky nodded once, solemnly, and Peggy turned again to walk away. She wandered back to camp, collapsing onto her cot and drifting into a heavy sleep.

When she awoke, she found Steve in her tent, sitting next to her on her cot. “Is something wrong?” she asked him, sitting up. She hoped, despite her deep state of sleep moments earlier, that she looked presentable

“No, no nothings wrong. I just thought it was time.” He said, smiling down at her.

“Time?”

“Well…Bucky talked to me last night. He said that you wanted…that you want me to…Y’know.”

“Fondue?” she offered, smirking.

He turned a lovely shade of crimson at that comment, playing with the hem of his uniform jacket. She wondered idly if the blush went all the way down his chest.

“James is good a friend to you.” She said quietly. Steve smiled gently.

“He is. He’s the only friend I’ve ever had.” He admitted.

“When the war is over, will you keep living with him?” she enquired. Steve thought about it for a minute. “Probably not. It’s best to do the separation now. That way he can find a place of his own by the time we get married.” He decided. “I mean- well, if you want to get married, that is. Not…I can’t _force_ you to get married obviously, and we’ve only known each other for a year so we can’t really do it right now but…”

“Steve, darling. I’d love to marry you. Once the war is over.” She assured him gently, pressing a kiss to his temple. He relaxed, nodding.

“What will Bucky do?” he asked worriedly.

“Oh, Bucky’s a survivor, darling. He’ll be fine.”

 

 

 

 


End file.
